KTR upbeat as work begins for Hyderabad's tallest Gateway IT Park

In a major move aimed at dispersing Information Technology sector's growth within Hyderabad, the Telangana government on Thursday began work on Gateway IT Park in the northern part of Hyderabad.

Information Technology and Industries Minister K. T. Rama Rao laid foundation stone for the facility coming up at Kandlakoya near Medchal, about 35 km from the city.

To be built at a cost of Rs 100 crore, the 14-storied Gateway Park will be the tallest IT tower in Hyderabad.

The Telangana State Industrial Infrastructure Corporation (TSIIC) will build the facility, which will be spread over 10 acres and can accommodate 100 companies. The six lakh square feet facility is expected to create over 50,000 jobs in the sector.

About 90 companies applied for office space at the IT Park and the acceptance letters were handed over to them at the foundation-stone laying programme.

As part of the Growth In Dispersion (GRID) policy aimed at expanding IT in all four directions, the state is developing IT infrastructure in north and eastern parts of the city.

Currently, the IT clusters are located in western party. Almost all major IT companies including the global giants have their offices in Hitec City and Gachibowli clusters.

KTR, as the IT Minister is popularly known, said he was happy to lay foundation stone for the Gateway Park on the birthday of Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao.

Stressing the importance of having audacious goals and the need to work hard, KTR stated that KCR was focused from a very young age and always worked hard to achieve his goals. "He has a great willpower," he said.

"Telangana has been striving to attract investments with an intention of creating job opportunities for the youngsters in the State. Telangana is setting new benchmarks for the country across all sectors," the minister said.

He pointed out that the Gateway IT Park is near ORR and has great connectivity. He also added that it takes just one hour to reach the International Airport and the Gachibowli, Hitech city areas from here.

KTR said that Medchal-Malkajgiri district already has good road connectivity, urban lung spaces and is also an educational hub with many engineering, pharma, and MBA colleges being located in the region. MMTS is also located very close to the IT Park and the efforts were on to develop the Gundlapochampally station which is 2 kms away.

The IT Park is being called 'Gateway IT Park' because it is located in Medchal - Malkajgiri district which connects Hyderabad and North Telangana with four highways - Medak-Narsapur Highway, Adilabad-Nizamabad-Kamareddy-Medchal Highway, Ramagundam-Karimnagar-Siddipet-Gajwel-Shameerpet Highway, and Bhoopalapally-Warangal-Yadadri-Ghatkesar Highway.